The #LUFC Breakfast Dabate (Wednesday 30th November)

Good Morning. It's Wednesday 30th November, and here are the latest headlines from Elland Road


Pundit lauds Adams performance

Former England midfielder, now pundit Danny Murphy lauded Tyler Adams dogged performance last night, as the USA progressed to the last 16 of the World Cup. The 23yo was once again in fine form for the Stars and Stripes mopping up loose balls throughout the pitch, whilst chasing down his opponents at every chance.

Should Leeds keep hold of Adams, can anyone think of a more suitable player to Captain the Whites next season?

According to Murphy “Thoroughly deserved,” “Some terrific performances. Musah was wonderful again and celebrated his birthday." “Tyler Adams was everywhere. A tireless performance from him.”

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Record losses may force Juve to sell McKennie

Juventus may be forced to sell some of their star players to balance the books in the New Year. Once a dominant force in Serie A, the Old Lady has fallen on hard times, and having recorded losses of £220m (a record in Italy), it's only logical to suggest that USA International midfielder Weston McKennie will be on that list.

The 24yo hasn't had the best start to the season for Massimiliano Allegri's team, currently occupying 17th place in the Whoscored' rankings, with a modest score of 6.63. With Mateusz Klich and Adam Forshaw expected to exit Elland Road in the near future, a versatile box to box midfielder of McKennie's quality may be exactly what Jesse Marsch needs to help push forward to the next level.

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Marsch predicted Adams would Captain USA after watching him as 15yo

During a recent interview, Jesse Marsch revealed that he texted Tyler Adams before the Wales game, wishing him luck, and reminding him of what a special person he is. Marsch recalls watching Adams in action for the USA U17's when he just just 15yo. On that very day, he predicted that Adams would Captain the Stars and Stripes at a World Cup

Marsch believes that Adams' upbringing has contributed to his success on and off the field; highlighting his academic qualities and grounded childhood as other factors that make him the person he is today.

"He's true to himself and he's, for a young man his age, I think he's gotten comfortable with who he is," "There's times when you're a footballer when you have to know how to say the right things but say them in a way that represents yourself and then there's other times when you just have to say what you think and his balance is understanding how to do that and get that balance right." "He's a smart kid and I think people underestimate how intelligent he is.

"In this world, there aren't as many professional football players who have had as good an upbringing, have had an education as what he's had and I think he and his family are grounded in all the things that matter in life, not just in football. He's special. "I texted him before the match [against Wales] and I said, the day I saw him when he was 15 years old playing for the U17s, I envisioned that day him captaining the World Cup team. "When I saw that young man at that age, I could see the building blocks of something really special."

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Morning all from the boss. Licking my lips at the prospect of getting rid of that Adams lad

 

Morning Il Presidente... those dollars spent getting international journos to MOM him every game will more than pay for itself

 

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Another one!

Leeds United are pleased to announce that the club will be staging a second home friendly during the World Cup break.

As previously announced, we will host Spanish side Real Sociedad on Friday 16th December (7:45pm kick-off). Tickets are still available to purchase for this fixture.We are now also welcoming Ligue 1 side AS Monaco to Elland Road on Wednesday 21st December (7pm kick-off).

Tickets will go on sale online as per the following dates:

Wednesday 30th November, from 10:30am - 2022/23 Season Ticket Holders

Thursday 1st December, 10:30am - All My Leeds Members

Friday 2nd December, 10:30am - General Sale

For this friendly fixture, supporters can purchase up to 10 tickets per person. No season ticket seats will be reserved for this game and tickets will be sold on a first come first served basis.

Ticket prices:

£20 Adults
£10 Concessions
£5 juniors (under 16)

Stands open:

North Stand, West Stand, East Stand Lower. Further stands will be open subject to demand.

 

What Leeds can learn from how Denmark use Rasmus Kristensen

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By Phil Hay

In the space of less than 24 hours, it was do or die for all three of Leeds United’s World Cup players, Tyler Adams and Brenden Aaronson with the U.S. last night and Rasmus Kristensen with Denmark today.

A footballer can spend years working towards these tournaments, only to see the experience come and go in a flash.


Aaronson’s minutes in American colours have been limited (he has come on as a substitute in all three games in Qatar) but Adams, after his performance against England, was certain to leave this World Cup with his reputation enhanced, and played the full 90 minutes as the U.S. beat Iran 1-0 on Tuesday to secure a spot in the last 16.

Adams’ job internationally is largely the same as it is domestically, and the midfielder Leeds fans have been following in Qatar is, give or take, the same midfielder they have grown to admire at Elland Road.

Given more time on the pitch, Aaronson would be recognisable too, the wasp-like presence who presses, hassles and never stops running. But where Kristensen is concerned, Denmark’s use of him in the group phase and the way their setup accommodates him has yielded more of what Leeds would like to see from him in the Premier League. If Jesse Marsch was looking for food for thought from the World Cup, he has found some in the attacking freedom the Danes are able to give his right-back.

Kristensen is only a few months into his career at Leeds and in comparison to Adams and Aaronson, his acclimatisation in England has been slower.

Improvement in his game was evident in the last few Premier League matches leading up to the World Cup but it could not be said that he hit the ground running after arriving from Red Bull Salzburg in the summer. Kristensen was a powerful attacking outlet for Salzburg, dangerous in both the Austrian Bundesliga and the more demanding Champions League, but his short time in England has been a battle to make those traits show themselves in a different competition and in the tactical system Marsch had chosen.

In top form, the 25-year-old is a mobile full-back who, despite not having lightning pace, likes to push on and make his presence felt in the opposition’s half.


Marsch wants that attacking ambition from him too but in his earliest appearances for Leeds, Kristensen looked constrained and reluctant to bomb on, unable to offer the penetration down the right that Salzburg regularly counted on. It is only recently that he has emerged from his shell and even then, questions remained about whether Marsch’s side are well-enough structured to give Kristensen the freedom to go forward. Defensively, that freedom comes at a cost.

His two outings for Denmark in Qatar so far, against Tunisia and France, have shown how much attacking licence his country are willing to give him.

As a starting point, there is one basic reason behind the lack of shackles on him. The Danes play three at the back, in contrast to Leeds’ 4-2-3-1, and the extra cover provided by their wider centre-backs eases the defensive responsibility on Kristensen.

Though Kylian Mbappe scored twice from his side of the pitch in Saturday’s 2-1 loss to defending champions France, the concessions were not down to structural flaws or tactics which left Denmark wide open. Kristensen merely succumbed to ball-watching twice, giving Mbappe the room he needed to finish — and Mbappe does not need much.

Leeds are a narrow side under Marsch and full-backs pressing forward tend to leave their two centre-backs with large areas of the pitch to control, much of it to either side of them. An example of this was the second goal conceded in a 2-0 defeat to Leicester City in October.

The major error here (below) was Marc Roca allowing Leicester to steal possession in Leeds’ half, but Kristensen’s starting position is a long way beyond halfway and, as the attack progresses, Marsch’s defending players are squeezed into a tight central area. Kristensen has no chance of recovering to track Harvey Barnes, and Robin Koch’s attempt to keep a dangerous cross away from Barnes ends with him turning the ball into his own net.

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In moments like that, it is understandable if Kristensen wonders how high a line to hold and how much of a risk to take with his positioning.


Leeds have had a problem under Marsch with teams targeting the gaps behind his full-backs and it is often the most obvious route to goals against them.

Where Denmark differ is in giving Kristensen the reassurance of more bodies between him and his penalty area, spread across the field and ready to step in if Denmark lose the ball and expose themselves to counter-attacks. They can look to Kristensen to advance and provide service out wide without him leaving them short-handed or gambling in a big way.

The Danes’ passing networks against Tunisia and France show us a number of things, including the extent to which their back three try to avoid being sucked into a narrow shape.

The graphics below also show how far up the pitch Kristensen is able to float and how good the value of his link-up passing has been. Eleven final-third entries against France and nine against Tunisia paint a picture of what he has tried to do. In an opening goalless draw with Tunisia, he won possession in the final third more than any other Denmark player.

It is not that his final ball has been truly deadly but coach Kasper Hjulmand’s tactics are encouraging him to go looking for those crossing opportunities.

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The protection behind Kristensen is easy to identify in real time. From deep or in advanced areas beyond halfway, Denmark can play to him out wide with their defensive three consistently in line, as with this ball forward from goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel against France…

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…and this pass in the same match, which finds the French compromised and giving up space on their left wing. The presence of two Danish attackers in the centre of the pitch has forced Didier Deschamps’ defence to commit bodies there, leaving Kristensen completely unattended wider out.

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Kristensen played a heavily offensive game against Tunisia, as the next graphic shows. Very few of his passes were attempted in the full-back zone directly to the right of Schmeichel’s box. He provided similar positivity four days later and was so involved in the France match that he touched the ball 95 times over 90 minutes — Denmark’s most active player.

The French forced victory through Mbappe with four minutes to go but Denmark might easily have taken a point and they will back themselves to have the beating of Australia today. A win would give them every chance of progressing from Group D.

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Some of the positions he took up against France and Tunisia are exactly what Leeds need from him — though it is only fair to say that they started to get more of that from him in their final Premier League fixtures ahead of the World Cup.

Left-to-right switches were easy for Denmark to pick out, creating situations like this one in which Kristensen sends an inviting low cross into the box. Better anticipation from Denmark’s forward line would have made something of it.

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In this next instance, against Tunisia, a one-two gets Kristensen to the byline and sets him up to pick out a run to the near post.

Tunisia were alive to the threat and got a body across to block in time but what is notable in both scenarios is how far forward Kristensen could roam without obvious fear of Denmark getting punished in behind him. It is a system which, in theory anyway, works to his strengths.

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The encouraging thing for Marsch has been the sense of Kristensen’s influence at Leeds growing over time.

As his debut season has gone on, the defender has made more inroads going forward and looked a little more like the player he was in Austria.

He has gone from a very deep average position in the 2-1 defeat to Crystal Palace on October 9 (below, No 25)…

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Tottenham Hotspur

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Marsch and Hjulmand both want him to threaten down his team’s right but Hjulmand’s back three is compensation for the fact that Kristensen playing with abandon and holding a high line will restrict his defensive output.

Leeds’ 4-2-3-1 contains inverted wingers rather than out-and-out wingers and within that formation, Marsch’s full-backs can often find themselves marshalling the whole flank alone, under pressure to provide attacking service but always looking over their shoulders.

Relieving him of some of that responsibility might be a route to finding Kristensen at his best.

 

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